Friday, June 18, 2010

South Carolina Green Party Looks Forward to Senate Race

The South Carolina Green Party Convention nominated well-known Columbia progressive Tom Clements for the office of United States Senator on May 1st of this year. Clements' name will appear on the ballot against incumbent Jim DeMint in the November 2, 2010 election.

Tom brings a long history of personal involvement in politics through his activism against nuclear power and for environmental responsibility.

Incumbent Republican Senator Jim DeMint deserves a vigorous challenge for his lack of attention to the people of South Carolina. His policies - outright opposition to any substantive health care reform, a weakening of campaign finance rules, laxity in corporate controls, unbridled support for Wall Street greed, uncritical boosterism of the nuclear and oil industries and an unseemly enthusiasm for an interventionist foreign policy that has needlessly cost of American lives and dollars - harm rather than benefit the people of South Carolina.

Tom Clements is a candidate with a history of public service and employment with organizations that have made a direct, positive impact on the lives of South Carolinians.

Tom is currently the Southeastern Nuclear Campaign Coordinator for the US branch of Friends of the Earth in Columbia, South Carolina, a full-time position he has held since January 2008. He focuses on issues related to nuclear power and nuclear waste and is the public interest watchdog over the Department of Energy’s Savannah River site. Tom worked for 13 years as a nuclear campaigner with the Greenpeace International nuclear campaign and for three years was the executive director of the Nuclear Control Institute in Washington, DC, where he worked on a host of issues related to proliferation of nuclear materials and technology. Tom won the Grassroots Activist of the Year award from the Alliance for Nuclear Accountability (an umbrella group of NGO’s working around Department Of Energy nuclear sites). In 2009 he also won the Thunder and Lightning activist award from the S.C. Progressive Network in 2009.

Tom has extensive foreign policy experience and has interacted with a host of governments at the United Nations in New York and Geneva and at embassies in Washington and abroad. Tom, who is fluent in Spanish, has served as a volunteer with the Red Cross, Peace Brigades International in Bogota, Colombia and the Peace Corps in Costa Rica.

In addition, Tom has been a volunteer with the Talking Books Program in Georgia. He worked as a carpenter and home renovation contractor for five years.

Tom has a Masters in Forest Resources from the University of Georgia and a BA from Emory University.

The Green Party pledges to run a clean, good-spirited campaign focused on challenging the do-nothing corporate politics of Jim DeMint by providing South Carolinians with a positive new approach to government. Tom Clements is interested in increasing popular involvement in government so that we can better safeguard our environment and the civil and social rights we all should enjoy. As Senator, Tom will work to open the books on the connections between government and business in South Carolina. At a time when the entire world has come to look at our state as an example of what is wrong with American politics, a clean campaign on putting government at the service of the people can help move our state forward and help bring about solutions to the problems of homelessness, poverty, lack of health care, wars of aggression and the environment.

The South Carolina Green Party is a progressive political party working for the economic, social and political advancement of the people of our state. The South Carolina Green Party has been a ballot qualified party in South Carolina since 2004. Since becoming a ballot qualified party in South Carolina, the Green Party has run candidates for federal, state and local office. Party steering committee member Eugene Platt is an elected member of the James Island Public Service District. Notable past campaigns include Arnold Karr's 2006 run for State Superintendent of Education; James Dunn's 2004 and 2006 runs for U.S. Representative from the 1st Congressional District; and Faye Walters for U.S. Representative in the 4th Congressional District in 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2010. The Greens have nominated Morgan Reeves as a fusion candidate for Governor in 2010. A complete list of our 2010 candidates can be found here: http://scgreenparty.wordpress.com/our-2010-federal-candidates/

2 Comments:

I am a voter in SC who’s in a bit of a pickle and am asking for your assistance.

I have lived in South Carolina my entire life (40 years). Voted in every election. Voting is very important to me. Most of my extended family lives (and votes) in South Carolina. My roots go very deep in this state. I am also a die-hard, full-blown “progressive”…liberal…mostly Democrat. And I love this state very much. From the bottom of my heart.

My question to you is this: Why do you deserve my vote on November 2nd?

Here’s my dilemma:

Back in 2005, I began attending the Senate Judiciary Sub-committee hearings regarding the Constitutional Amendment on “gay marriage”.

I am not a single-issue voter, but sir, you tried to silence my family from speaking. During those very important hearings, you made it VERY CLEAR that “our side” should not be heard. On such an important issue as being written OUT of the SC state Constitution! The same state where my partner of 20 years and I live and pay taxes (which our state government has no problem cashing).

You, Mr. Sheheen, vehemently fought to give my family NO TIME to speak in front of the committee (zero, nada, zilch)…not 1 hour, not 30 minutes, not 15 seconds. Frankly, you and the majority of senators in the hearings were big, ol’ fashioned bullies.

And NOW you are asking for my VOTE? Wow!

What to do, what to do!

So, please tell me…should I just hold my nose and pull the lever for you in a couple of weeks?

You recently said this, and frankly, I’m not sure you really believe it:

“And I think that if a child, regardless of the reason why, is the subject of bullying, we ought to take action. Because every child is God's creature in this world. I love my children, I'm proud of my children. And whatever problems my children might have, whatever blessings my children may have, whatever my children may go through in life, I'll be there to support them. And I think we need to have that same approach to children throughout this state. And I will.”

Your actions do not match your words, Mr. Sheheen. If you do believe that bullying is “unacceptable”, why would you allow a room full of senators to do it without protesting? The fact is, you were one of the ring-leaders!

When I spoke to your Campaign Manager this morning, he said that if I decided not to vote for you, then that would essentially be a vote for Ms. Haley. Basically, I was told that I should vote for you simply because you are a Democrat.

Why should I vote for a man who tried to bully my family into silence?

I can no longer accept: “A non-vote is a vote for Ms. Haley.”

BTW, here are the people (my parents) you tried to silence. In this video (2005) they are testifying in front of the Senate Sub-Judiciary. These are the voices that you felt were not worthy of having a full hearing on:

http://vimeo.com/4985301

I look forward to hearing from you. Feel free to respond on this blog.